Stolen Eyes, Stolen Heart

A new intern had been using my photos to date the CEO online for three months. Suddenly, a stream of comments popped up before my eyes:

[Oh no, what now? The CEO is coming back next week to meet the protagonist in person, but the protagonist has been dating him using the antagonists photos!]

[Sigh, its all because the antagonists big, alluring eyes were too captivating. Otherwise, our protagonist wouldnt have been so self-conscious about her single eyelids, forcing her to use the antagonists photos for online dating.]

[Dont worry, our protagonist darling is super smart! Shes getting double eyelid surgery tomorrow, and with some clever makeup, shell be ninety percent similar to the antagonist. The CEO will never find out!]

[Once the protagonist gets her double eyelids, shell definitely be prettier than the antagonist. After all, shes a 22-year-old girl, naturally fresher than a 28-year-old old hag.]

Wait, this 28-year-old big-eyed antagonist why does she sound so much like me?

Just as I was trying to make sense of it, Lynn, my intern, knocked and walked in.

Boss, Id like to request a week off for double eyelid surgery!

I looked up, glancing at her with a faint smile.

Leave denied. Youll be on a two-week business trip.

Lynn froze, her eyes wide with disbelief.

Is is that big project in Atlanta being assigned to me? But Im just an intern, I dont have any experience.

I nodded, my voice firm. Dont worry. My old friend is the contact person over there. Shell guide you every step of the way. Havent you always wanted to be involved in this project? After much consideration, I decided young people deserve a chance. This trip will be tough, though. Theres a lot of work to manage daily, and you might even have to pull all-nighters for meetings. Youll need to dedicate all your time and energy to it. If you seize this opportunity and do well, you can secure your full-time position, and perhaps even get a promotion and a raise.

Any other intern would have jumped for joy. But for Lynn, a promotion and a raise were nothing compared to meeting the CEO. Seizing a career opportunity was less important than snagging the CEO, a veritable cash cow. Becoming the CEOs wife was a far more comfortable life than working like a dog. She certainly knew how to calculate her priorities. So, without a second thought, Lynn immediately refused.

But my double eyelid surgery is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. That surgeon is incredibly popular and hard to booka lot of influencers get their work done by him. I booked this a month in advance, I cant change the time. I really appreciate you giving me this chance, Boss, but my abilities are limited. Im afraid I cant complete this task. Maybe you should find someone else.

I had anticipated her excuse. So I slapped the desk, feigning anger.

Lynn, have you lost your mind? Giving up a business trip for double eyelid surgery? Do you know how rare an opportunity like this is for an intern? The chance is yours, your flight is booked, and the contact in Atlanta is waiting for you at the hotel. Think carefully. If you forgo this opportunity for plastic surgery, Ill have no choice but to inform HR during your performance review. I doubt anyone would want to hire someone who doesnt understand priorities.

At my threatening tone, the comments section exploded:

[Oh my god, typical evil antagonist, daring to threaten our protagonist like that!]

[Shes just a measly director, who does she think she is?]

[Yeah, whats the antagonist flaunting? Shell regret this later!]

[Once our protagonist darling becomes the CEOs wife, shell be the first one to get fired!]

[Firing her is too boring! Make her clean toilets and fetch coffee, thats real revenge!]

The comments kept scrolling, most of them calling me evil for trying to stop the protagonist and the CEO from meeting. It was then that I realized I was in a CEO romance novel. In the book, Lynn was the protagonist. She had fallen in love with the CEOs photo when she first joined the company, then scoured the internet to learn his preferences. Discovering he liked big-eyed beauties, she set her sights on me, the woman with the largest eyes in the company, and secretly used my photos to entice him.

The original plan was that after she had double eyelid surgery, styled to match my eyes by a popular surgeon, she would smoothly meet the CEO, embark on a sweet romance, and become his wife. However, as the evil antagonist, once I learned she was using my photos to date the CEO, I would try every trick in the book to seduce him. Eventually, the protagonist, fearing Id succeed, would use her status as the CEOs wife to fire me. Shed then expose my flirtatious messages with the boss online. This would lead to my being blacklisted across the entire industry, leaving me destitute, and ultimately, Id be hit by a car by a righteous netizen and die.

Oh, lovely. Since I was the evil antagonist with such a grim fate, I had no choice but to rewrite my destiny. The thought of Lynn becoming the CEOs wife and unleashing her vengeance, leading to my tragic death, sent a shiver down my spine.

When HR first handed me Lynns resume, I immediately passed on her due to her low academic qualifications. But she wouldnt give up, repeatedly waiting for me downstairs, pleading for an interview. Seeing the brave and persistent young woman, I softened and let her join my department. Now, it seemed, it was all fate, merely playing out the books plot. But the story was just beginning, and I still had a chance to change everything.

With that thought, I fixed my gaze on Lynn and said coldly,

The plane departs in three hours. I hope you make the right choice.

Then I sent her the flight details. Upon receiving the booking confirmation, Lynns face instantly fell. She frowned, challenging me,

Ms. Davies, I really cant go. Why are you making things so difficult for me? I told you I have something important tomorrow and need to take a day off. Why do you insist on sending me on a business trip? You cant just force me to do things I dont want to do just because youre my boss, can you? Whether you approve the leave or not, Im not coming in starting tomorrow. I have to get this double eyelid surgery.

With that, she grabbed her bag, ready to storm out.

Seeing Lynns defiance, the comments section immediately erupted:

[Our protagonist is awesome, thats exactly what she should do!]

[Who does that old hag of an antagonist think she is? Why should Lynn listen to her?]

[Whats a lousy project lead compared to becoming the CEOs wife?]

[The antagonist is so shameless, doing everything she can to keep the leads apart!]

[Our protagonist darlings double eyelid surgery has to happen tomorrow, or the CEO will find out when he arrives!]

[Our protagonist is about to get the same double eyelids as the antagonist; the CEO loves those sparkling big eyes!]

The timing of these comments couldnt have been better. I was just looking for an excuse to get a handle on her. Since the CEO loved those big eyes so much, what if the entire company knew Lynn was getting double eyelid surgery? How would she continue her charade then?

With that thought, I quickly posted a message in the team chat:

[Lynn Spencer is having double eyelid plastic surgery tomorrow. Anyone interested in going to Atlanta for the big project instead?]

The moment she saw the message, Lynn rushed back, pleading with me,

Boss, I beg you, please retract that message! Such private matters dont need to be shared with the whole team.

I smirked, my voice calm. Since you dont want to go on the business trip, of course I have to ask around to see if anyone else can fill in. Isnt that normal?

Lynn yelled, her voice laced with desperation,

Ill go! Ill go on the business trip! Please, just retract the message!

Once the message was gone, Lynn finally breathed a sigh of relief. She lightly wiped the sweat from her brow, then accused me,

Ms. Davies, why do you have to push me like this? All I want is to get double eyelids. Whats wrong with a young woman wanting to be beautiful?

I spread my hands, feigning helplessness. How am I pushing you? If you dont want to go on the trip, I ask others. Thats perfectly normal, isnt it?

Seeing her speechless, I shifted the conversation, deliberately asking,

On the other hand, why are you so worried about people knowing youre getting double eyelids? Could you be hiding some secret?

Before Lynn could reply, the comments section had already exploded:

[That old hag of an antagonist is so shameless, truly manipulative!]

[She intentionally posted it in the company-wide chat, just to let everyone know the protagonist is getting double eyelids, didn't she?]

[The most despicable thing is that the antagonist even deliberately used the word plastic surgery to mislead everyone!]

[Although the CEO doesnt really check group messages, his assistant does! What if it gets back to him?]

[Good thing it was retracted, otherwise if the CEO saw it, it would be over! The CEO hates women who get plastic surgery!]

[Ugh, our poor protagonist, trapped by the antagonist like this!]

Hahaha, I knew it! Mr. Sterling, being a CEO, was never short of beautiful women. Why would he like someone whod had plastic surgery? Even double eyelid surgery was a no-go, as it could affect future generations looks.

Lynn was flustered by my sudden question. She stammered, trying to explain,

N-no no, its not I just feel its personal no need for everyone to know. I only told you because I needed to take leave, and the doctor said I need a week of rest after surgery, no phone use. I wanted to make sure you wouldnt assign me work during my time off.

Oh, I see. That explained why she came to my office to ask for leave in person. I didn't bother listening to her excuses anymore. I pointed to the clock on the wall and reminded her,

Alright, hurry up and go. You can get your double eyelids done later.

Lynn knew there was no room for negotiation. She glared at me, annoyed, and then stormed out.

After confirming Lynn was on the plane, I immediately messaged my best friend in Atlanta. I told her to keep a close eye on Lynn, making sure every move she made was under surveillance.

Recalling the comments that said the CEO would return next week, yet there was no internal company announcement, I wondered: was Mr. Sterling coming back specifically for Lynn? To gather more information, I ordered a coffee and went to Jessicas office, our Head of HR.

Jessica, the annual gala is next Friday. Any special guests attending?

Jessica took a sip of her coffee and whispered,

Just between us, Mr. Sterling will be at the gala this year. The grand prize is a month of study at our headquarters in France for one lucky employee drawn live. Youve been with the company for five years, but youve never met him, have you? He suddenly decided to attend this year, and the grand prize was his last-minute addition.

Hearing that, I instantly understood. The lucky employee was surely Lynn. Using a work trip as an excuse to take his girlfriend to Franceclassic CEO move.

Back in my office, I dug out some of my best photos and did a full-network search on social media. Hours later, I finally found Lynns private account on a certain platform. The account had only been registered for a short time, just three months. She had completely copied and pasted my entire social media feedmy selfies, daily life photos, even my posts about feeding stray cats and my insights on industry trends.

Good heavens, this wasnt just using my photos for online dating; she was practically replicating my entire life! Lynn was nothing short of a con artist!

After scrolling through all the content, I didnt find any interactions between her and Mr. Sterling. So I clicked on her followers list and found only one person. This account didnt show a face, but every single post reeked of pretentiousness. It was either a picture of a Rolls-Royce emblem or a Rolex watch, all flaunting extreme wealth. And Lynn, like a sycophant, commented on every single post with more than fifty words.